CHAPTER 8SHIP/AIRCRAFT CHARACTERISTICSThe U.S. Navy has thousands of vessels and aircraft inits inventory. They range from small harbor patrol boats tohuge super carriers and from helicopters to giant transportplanes. You wont be expected to know the characteristicsof each one, but you should be able to recognize the type ofship or aircraft you see. You should also be able to identifyits mission and armament and have an idea about its size.In this chapter, youll learn about the major classes and themajor types of ships and aircraft the Navy operates andwhat their characteristics and missions are. You will alsolearn some of the more common terms used to identifystructural features and the terminology used to expressdirection and locations aboard ship.Before you learn about the types and classes of ships,you need some background information about ships ingeneral. To take advantage of scientific advances, the fleetis making changes. Cruise missiles, close-in defensesystems, and multirole radar units are replacingconventional electronic and weapons systems. The Navysnew submarines and aircraft carriers are nuclear-powered.Therefore, steaming endurance is limited only by thereplenishment of necessary supplies and food.Many ships have been modernized to perform a widevariety of missions and to accomplish old missions moreefficiently. During overhaul, older ships are outfitted withnew radar, fire control, and communications systems. Thehulls are strengthened and power plants reworked toextend the lives of these ships. However, its noteconomically sound to convert all ships to nuclear power.SHIP TERMSLearning Objectives: When you finish this chapter, youwill be able toIdentify terms used aboard ship.Recall the names used for superstructures andcomponents of ships hulls to include decks anddoors and hatches.Identify structural terms.In civilian life you used terms such as upstairs,downstairs, windows, floors, ceilings, walls, andhallways. In the Navy, you must learn to use Navylanguage. To use civilian terminology aboard ships marksyou as a landlubbera scornful term used to describethose who know nothing of the sea.GENERAL TERMSLengthwise direction on a ship is fore and aft;crosswise is athwartships. The front of the ship is the bow;the rearmost is the stern. To move forward toward the bowis to go forward; to move toward the stern is to go aft.Anything that is more toward the bow than another objectis forward of it, and anything that is more toward the sternis abaft (behind) the other object.A ship is divided in half lengthwise by a centerline.When you face forward along the centerline, everything toyour right is to starboard; everything to your left is to port.Fixtures and equipment take the name of the side on whichthey are located, such as the starboard gangway and theport anchor.When you go toward the centerline, you go inboard.An object nearer the centerline is inboard of another objectand that object is outboard of the first. The section aroundthe midpoint area is called amidships (also called thewaist). The extreme width of a ship, usually in the midshiparea, is its beam.8-1This ship is built to fight. Youd better know how.Admiral Arleigh BurkeThe air fleet of an enemy will never get within striking distance of ourcoast as long as our aircraft carriers are able to carry thepreponderance of air power to the sea.Rear Admiral W. A. Moffett